


Whatever Lies Beyond This Morning

by HouseofSannae



Series: Kingdom Hearts Ψ: The Seeker of Darkness [29]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Discussions of Sex and Sexuality, Multi, Slice of Life, aqua struggles with technology, he's not really this dumb i swear, more tags to be added as chapters are posted, naminé finally goes to therapy, the isa/lea is two-sided but lea hasn't noticed yet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:01:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26281591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HouseofSannae/pseuds/HouseofSannae
Summary: Short moments from the lives of the Guardians of Light in the aftermath of Xehanort's defeat
Relationships: Aqua & Terra & Ventus (Kingdom Hearts), Aqua & Vanitas (Kingdom Hearts), Isa & Lea (Kingdom Hearts), Isa/Lea (Kingdom Hearts), Kairi & Selphie (Kingdom Hearts), Kairi/Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Naminé and Kairi's Father, Roxas/Xion (Kingdom Hearts), Xion & Sora's Mother
Series: Kingdom Hearts Ψ: The Seeker of Darkness [29]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/960336
Comments: 228
Kudos: 127





	1. The Case Of Roxas And Xion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roxas wakes up
> 
> Xion talks to her boyfriend's mother

Roxas yawned.

He was pretty confident now that he wasn’t, in fact, a morning person. Having to be up early for school was a pretty good guard against mornings being enjoyable.

Xion shifted against him and murmured something in her sleep.

On the other hand, waking up next to the love of his life was a point in mornings’ favour.

Xion murmured something again, and it was adorable, even if Roxas was pretty sure she’d said “But I dun wanna _be_ part robot”. Wondering what she was dreaming about, he kissed her forehead and ruffled her hair.

Technically speaking, they weren’t supposed to be sleeping in the same bed anymore. However, his mother was letting them have a bit of leeway. Sora had argued in their favour, although Roxas didn’t appreciate the comparison to paired stuffed animals Sora had tried to use.

They had eventually been allowed to continue rooming together here on the Islands, with some ground rules his mother had insisted upon. First, they both had to promise there was to be no sex whatsoever until they were both of age. They’d agreed to that one easily, since they’d both agreed a long time ago that they wanted things to progress slowly.

They were also both well aware that the definition of what counts as “sex” can vary from person to person.

Neither had seen fit to discuss that fact with Roxas’s mother.

Secondly, she’d made them both agree that they wouldn’t mention the fact that they were rooming together at school. Both of them saw the logic in this, and Roxas’s biggest concern was that Sora was going to run his mouth and mention it to the wrong person by mistake. Right there was a headache no one involved wanted.

It had been roughly a week since the big move-out from the Mysterious Tower. Terra, Aqua, and Ven had returned to living in the Land of Departure, and Sora, Kairi, Riku, Naminé, Roxas, and Xion had returned to the Destiny Islands, Naminé moving in with Kairi and her father, and Roxas and Xion moving in with his and Sora’s mother. Isa and Lea had stayed at the Tower, trying to figure out where they were going to go. They were from Radiant Garden, but neither felt much of a tie to that place. Roxas missed Lea. And Isa. He supposed. Xion was a bit more open about missing them both. At least they were just a Light Corridor away.

Even before moving back, Kairi’s father had been setting the ground work for integrating them into Destiny Islands society. Leon from Radiant Garden had created birth certificates and medical records for all three of them, assisted by Even, who in a manner of speaking _was_ their doctor. As the Restoration Committee was effectively the government of Radiant Garden, it wasn’t even actual forgery.

There was no need to pretend they were from the Islands, either. After the incident with Xigbar, it had slowly become common knowledge on the Islands that they were an island in more than one sense. Rather than a full blown panic, there’d been more of a general sense of “well, all right.” The Islanders had reasoned, quite correctly, that their daily lives probably weren’t going to change all that much. There’d been a general agreement to treat Roxas, Xion, and Naminé as if their cover story of coming from another island far away was fact. Not that it wasn’t, from a certain point of view.

The process of getting them settled had, on his mother’s insistence, also involved testing the three of them for entry into the Destiny Islands school system. To Roxas’s half-amusement, half-irritation, Xion had actually managed to land a grade _higher_ than himself and Naminé, putting her in the same grade as Riku and Kairi (Riku and Sora both having to make up for the year they’d missed). Roxas and Naminé had instead ended up in the same grade as Sora.

He had to admit that Xion looked damn good in the uniform skirt, though.

She stirred against him, and blinked open her eyes, still drowsy. “Morning, cutie.” Roxas said, smiling.

“Mrrrrnng,” Xion replied, yawning. She snuggled against him. “ _You’re_ a cutie.”

“Aw, thanks,” Roxas said. He leaned down and kissed her cheek, and she leaned up and kissed his in turn; they’d learned the hard way that morning breath wasn’t conducive to makeouts a long time ago.

“Munny for your thoughts?” Xion asked, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. “You look like you were thinking about something.”

“Hmmm,” Roxas said. “How much munny?”

“Hmmm,” Xion echoed, then stuck out her tongue. “Sixty-nine munny.”

“You look really hot in a skirt,” Roxas replied promptly. Xion flushed bright red and pulled the blanket up over her head.

“Are you serious?” she mumbled.

“Yeah, entirely,” Roxas said, patting her head. “That’s what I was thinking about.”

“Why are you thinking about uniforms?” Xion huffed. “It’s the _weekend_ , and I get to wear _pants_ again.” Both of them had been dumbfounded to discover the concept of a “weekend”, as from their perspective, it was a guaranteed two days’ vacation every week.

“Not a fan of the skirts?” Roxas teased.

Xion pulled her head out from under the covers, a pouty look on her face. “Not really, no. They’re just… not _me_.”

Roxas sat up, frowning. “If it’s bothering you that much, I’m sure we could talk to the school, maybe get you–”

“No, no, no, not like that,” Xion said. “I appreciate it, though.” She kissed his cheek again. “It’s just not what I prefer wearing.” Her lips pursed. “You really like it that much?”

Roxas shrugged. “I can live without it easily if you don’t like wearing them. It’s not a big deal to me.”

Xion smiled. “Okay. Thanks for explaining.”

“Of course,” Roxas said, patting her head again. She smiled under his touch.

“…Maybe, like… just in private,” she said after a while.

“Huh?”

“Skirts. Just in private. Just for you,” Xion said, leaning against him.

“Oh. Um. Cool,” Roxas said, reddening. Xion smirked at him, and gave a very slow and obnoxious wink. He tousled her hair.

“So, plans for the day?” Roxas asked after a bit more silent cuddling.

“Ienzo’s bringing over that computer-thingy for the mayor’s office,” Xion said. “I wanna go watch them install it.”

“And play with it?” Roxas teased.

Xion stuck out her tongue at him. “Hey, _someone_ has to know how to work it. Doesn’t do a lot of good for inter-world communication if no one can run the damn thing.”

“True,” Roxas conceded.

“What about you?” Xion asked.

“Well, for one, I’m going to watch someone I love very much get really really excited over a box full of plastic and metal,” Roxas teased. “That’ll be adorable.”

“It’s a _cool_ box full of plastic and metal,” Xion sniffed, indignant.

“But aside from that, I don’t really have any plans,” Roxas finished.

“Hmm,” Xion said. “Did you think any more about what that guy asked you?”

“The theatre guy?” Roxas asked. He’d been approached by a man a couple years older than himself, with blond hair, who had overheard him singing to Xion one day at the beach. The man had apologized for interrupting, and told Roxas that he ran a community theatre group in the town. Apparently, he thought Roxas had the kind of talent they could shape into skill.

Roxas had been a little nonplussed by his offer, but after asking around (i.e. asking Sora and Kairi), he discovered that the offer had been genuine. He was still thinking it over.

“I’m still thinking it over,” he told Xion, who nodded.

“Yeah, I figured. I think you should go for it, if you ask me,” she replied.

“Really?”

She shrugged. “Yeah, why not? You’ve got a pretty voice. And it’s a good opportunity for you to, you know, learn how not to be bitchy around people.”

“Wow, rude,” Roxas said, but he was smirking. “I’ll think about it.”

“And we can get Kairi to teach you how to do your makeup,” Xion added.

“Sure,” Roxas scoffed, but chuckled.

Life was good.

“Xion?”

She looked over from the bottom of the stairs. “Yeah?”

Sora and Roxas’s mother was sitting in the living room, a book held loosely in her lap and a cautious look on her face. “Do you… mind if I ask you something?”

Xion raised an eyebrow. She’d never heard Roxas’s mom sound this… unsure. Even when she was worried, there was still a quiet confidence that Xion was unconsciously starting to think of as “mom-like”.

“Sure?” she said, walking into the room and sitting down next to her on the couch. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing… I think,” Roxas’s mom replied. “I was just… wondering…” she bit her lip, in the same way that Sora and Roxas did, and Xion repressed a smirk. “Is there… a reason why you don’t call me ‘Mom’?”

Xion blinked. “Because… you’re not my mother?”

“Oh,” she said, and Xion suddenly realized that was a _horrible_ way to say what she meant.

“No, no, that’s not what I mean!” she said, hastily. “It’s not that I don’t… you know, appreciate you and that you took me in! It’s… you’re _Roxas’s_ mother.”

His mother blinked. “I... don’t think I understand what that has to do with it?”

“Roxas is my boyfriend,” Xion said. “So… since you’re _his_ mother, it would be weird if we were dating and you’re also _my_ mother.”

Comprehension dawned. “Oh. I see.” She sighed. “Well, that does take a load off my mind. I was worried… you didn’t… that something was wrong.”

“No, no, of course not.” Xion reached out a hand, and put it on hers. “I just… thought it would be awkward.”

Roxas’s mom smiled at her. “So… is it all right for me to be thinking of you as my daughter?”

“As long as you don’t find it weird that I’m also dating your son?” Xion asked.

“Mmm. Daughter-in-law, then?” she asked, a teasing tone in her voice.

Xion turned bright red. “Um. I. Um. That would imply. Um. I.”

Roxas’s mother snickered, patting her on the back. “It would imply that I think you two will get married someday? I want the both of you to be happy. I’m well aware that getting married might be in the cards for you. Did you think I wouldn’t approve?”

“Well… no… but you’ve been… um… how do I put this,” Xion hesitated. “There’re things you… frowned on… when it came to us being together?”

She raised an eyebrow. “You mean how I made you promise you weren’t going to have sex if I let you sleep in the same room?”

Xion felt her blush deepen further and nodded, unable to meet her eyes.

She sighed. “Xion, I was sixteen once. I’m well aware that if you two put your minds to it, there’s not a damn thing I can do to stop you having sex. Especially since the both of you can teleport to entirely different worlds on command. That said, that sort of intimacy is something that can hurt you psychologically if you aren’t ready for it. And it’s more likely that you’ll be ready for it the older you are.” Her eyes narrowed. “And more to the point, the two of you aren’t legally adults yet, no matter which age we use. Legally speaking, you shouldn’t be having sex anyway.”

“Legally speaking,” Xion mumbled, still bright red and unable to look at her, “there’s a clause in the law regarding age of consent that allows for underage sex so long as the participants are within five years of one another, and Roxas and I are only one month apart, give or take a few days.”

“Legally speaking I don’t want to hear about that,” Roxas’s mother replied, drily. “Like I said, I can’t stop you, but if you think this is embarrassing for _you_ to be talking about with _me_ , imagine how _I_ feel.”

Xion pinched her lips together and looked at her out of the corner of her eye. There was an amused look on Roxas’s mom’s face, if accompanied by a tired resignation. “Sorry,” she said.

Roxas’s mom shook her head. “Don’t apologize for being a teenager. And I hope you understand that if there’s a problem… _any_ kind of problem… you can come to me with it. Both of you.”

Xion nodded, then suddenly realized what the emphasis meant. “Oh, wait, you mean if we… If I get… Oh. Um.”

“Try not to,” she said, sounding very strained.

“Right, yes, of course,” Xion said, hastily. “I mean… we’re not dumb, we know that we’d need condoms if we… uh…” she verbally backspaced. “I mean… if we were… we’d prepare properly, you know, not just… um…”

Roxas’s mother sighed. “Bathroom counter, third drawer from the top.”

Xion’s eyes widened. “Wait, what? Really?”

“I’d rather I knew you were prepared even if I’d also prefer you not do it at all just yet,” she said, now unable to meet Xion’s eyes.

“Oh. Wow. Um. Thanks for telling me?” Xion said.

“Of course.” The two let the embarrassment sit for a while. Eventually, Roxas’s mother said, “I should… probably ask you if you’d like to figure out birth control, too.”

“Oh. Um. That’s. Probably. A good idea.” Xion said. “Although… I think that’s a conversation I should have with my doctor.”

“You mean Even?” Xion had declined to find a doctor on the Islands, since Radiant Garden was only a Light Corridor away, and Even was already basically filling the role. Plus, it gave her an excuse to go see him sometimes.

“Yeah. I have… um… special circumstances, and that might make things more difficult,” Xion said.

She frowned. “Special circumstance? You don’t need to tell me,” she added, seeing Xion’s lip twist.

Xion took a deep breath. “No, no, I think I want you to know. If that’s okay with you.”

“Of course, sweetheart,” she said. “Anything.”

Xion took a deep breath, leaned in close, and whispered her secret into her ear.

“Oh,” Roxas’s mother said, surprised. “I… see.”

“I’m still a girl,” Xion said, unsure if she needed to be defensive.

“Of course you are,” she replied, nodding firmly. “But I agree, you should probably talk to Even about getting you on birth control. Just to make sure it’ll work for you the way you want it.”

“And won’t that be a fun conversation,” Xion muttered.

“About as fun as this one, huh?” she replied, smirking.

The tension finally broke, and both of them burst out laughing. “Well, it could’ve been a worse conversation,” Xion said. “You’re pretty easy to talk to.”

“Thank you, Xion, I try,” she replied.

Xion took a deep breath. She held out her arms. “I guess once isn’t going to hurt. Thank you… Mom.”

To her surprise, Roxas’s mom actually sniffed a little at that, wiping a tear out of her eye before hugging her. “Of course, sweetheart.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, who wants six weeks of people just living their lives?  
> I'm guessing the answer is "everyone". I feel confident in my answer.  
> Of course we're starting with my favourite pair, because I'm the author and I make the rules. This fic doesn't tell an ongoing story so much as it provides snapshots of life. Scenes, if you will. They're _roughly_ in chronological order but they potentially bounce around. How much time has passed in total between each character's story is up in the air (for example, theoretically Roxas's story and Xion's story happen on the same day, but they don't _have_ to.) Be prepared for more inconsistencies. The important thing is that time is passing, and they are living.  
> And from an out-of-text perspective, the point here is to establish where these characters are now, and what they're doing, as well as the general state of affairs on the Destiny Islands now that they've joined Disney Town and Radiant Garden in knowing that other worlds exist. (Twilight Town, sadly, is for the moment locked out of the loop. If only Ienzo could focus on making those computer-thingys of his smaller. But could you imagine that? Kingdom Hearts with _cell phones?_ Don't be ridiculous).   
> I don't have much to say about the stories themselves this time around, I think they're pretty self-explanatory, but if you'd like further explanation or clarification you know where to find me (the comment section. The comment section is where you find me).  
> I think that about covers it. Until next time!


	2. The Case of Riku and Ventus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riku finds some answers
> 
> Ven gets his hands dirty

Responsibility, Riku had decided, was a dirty word.

It was Kairi’s fault. She was the one who had mentioned to her father that Riku was a Keyblade Master. The title, which when Riku had earned it had seemed fairly arbitrary, was taken to mean that Riku had the first idea of what he was doing.

Which of course was ridiculous.

But he’d been saddled with what was technically a governmental position, if an unofficial one: Keyblade Master of the Destiny Islands. Insofar as one was needed. Still, the fact of the matter was that Riku was the only Master who lived on the Islands, Mickey having returned to Disney Town and Aqua to the newly-reconstituted Land of Departure.

To make matters worse, Yen Sid had approved the appointment. Riku had tried to protest: that the Destiny Islands wasn’t in need of a Keyblade Master, and wasn’t Braveheart tied to the Mastery of the Mysterious Tower anyways? Yen Sid had countered that with the facts that no world actually _needed_ a Keyblade Master, but since Riku was one and he lived on the Destiny Islands, it was merely a description of fact, and that a Master’s Keyblade would attune itself to whichever world its wielder called home. He was also entirely able to take care of the Mysterious Tower without a Keyblade, as was quite evident.

Thus having his concerns supposedly mollified, Riku was sent back home to figure out what the fuck being the Master of the Destiny Islands was supposed to mean.

Well. He could start by defining what it was not.

There weren’t any Heartless on the Islands, unlike in Radiant Garden where the world’s heart was healing slowly. Therefore, he (and Kairi, Sora, Roxas, Xion, and Naminé, but that was beside the point) wasn’t needed in the capacity of exterminator.

At the moment, there were also no people in need of training in the use of a Keyblade, and there probably wouldn’t be for a while. Therefore, he wasn’t needed in the capacity of teacher, and hopefully wouldn’t any time in the near future, since the biggest reason he could think of to come to him over, say, Aqua or Terra, would be for specialized darkness-control training. Which, now that he thought about it, was probably a good idea to base in such a bright and peaceful place as the Destiny Islands.

What did that leave?

“Ey, Riku!”

Riku jerked out of his contemplation to see Wakka walking up, a group of small children in tow. “Oh, hey Wakka. What’s up?”

“Well, the kids were asking me if it was true there were other worlds out there. And I figured, you’d be the one to talk to about that, ya? So I brought them over here. How about it?” Wakka grinned. He’d gotten taller in the time Riku had been gone, and his voice had deepened considerably.

“Um. Okay, yeah, I guess I could do that,” Riku said, surprised. “What do you want to know?”

The kids immediately started discussing their plan of attack amongst themselves. Riku recognized Pacce, the little brother of his and Sora’s respective classmates Isaaru and Maroda, as well as one of the few pairs of twins on the Islands, a boy and a girl named Palom and Porom. He had to reach a little further to recall the names of the last boy and girl – Dona, he thought, was the girl’s name, and Barthello was the boy’s.

He felt a little bad for the poor kid, since he wouldn’t grow into a name like that for quite a while.

The group turned back to face Riku, determined looks on their faces, as if they’d come to a singular consensus.

There was a collective deep breath in, and then each of them started babbling a completely different set of questions.

Riku sat in mild bemusement for a couple of seconds, before clapping his hands together for attention. “Okay, okay, but you can’t all ask questions at once. Do you mind if I choose who goes first, and then you can take turns?”

“Sounds like a good idea to me, ya?” Wakka said, grinning encouragingly – at Riku or at the kids, Riku wasn’t quite sure.

There was a grumbling among the group, but Riku’s suggestion was deemed acceptable. Riku pointed to Pacce, who he figured was the most neutral place to start.

“Um, are there really other worlds?” Pacce asked, nervous. Riku smiled, in a way he hoped was reassuring.

“Yes, there are,” he said. “When Sora, Kairi, and I were missing, that’s where we were.”

“Where’d they come from?” Pacce continued.

“Well, that’s a little bit of a long story,” Riku said, but the kids were quick to assure him that they _liked_ long stories. “All right. So, in the beginning, there used to be just one World. But, some bad things happened, and the World broke.”

“Who broke the world?” Palom interrupted.

“There was a war,” Riku said, “over a thing called Kingdom Hearts. Everyone wanted it, but they couldn’t agree on things, so they started fighting each other to control it. The war got so bad, the World was broken into many pieces.”

“How many?” Palom interrupted again. Porom, his sister, shushed him, but Riku shook his head.

“Well, whenever you look up at the sky at night? And you see all the stars?” The kids nodded, leaning in closer as Riku lowered his tone, as if telling them a secret. “Each and every one of those stars is its own world.”

There was a low gasp of appreciation among his audience.

“Have you gone to all of them?” Dona asked.

Riku shook his head. “No, no. I don’t think anyone could in one lifetime. But I’ve been to a few.”

“What were they like?” Porom asked.

Riku took a second to let the immediately-summoned memories of fighting Roxas in a neon cityscape, fighting for his life in a graveyard, and almost killing Sora in a castle fade. “They’re mostly really nice,” he said. “They’re full of people living their lives, just like you and me.”

Palom scoffed. “If they’re so great, why did you come back here?”

“The Destiny Islands are my home,” Riku said. “It’s where my friends and family are. Travelling is nice, but it’s also nice to come home once in a while.”

There was a brief moment of silence as the kids considered this, and Riku ignored the way Wakka was grinning at him. Eventually, Porom raised her hand.

“Yes?” Riku asked.

“Why is it supposed to be a secret?” she asked.

Riku nodded. “Good question. I’ve never really been told _why_ , but my guess would be that the old Keyblade Masters who survived the war that broke the World decided it was safer if each of the new worlds didn’t interact with each other. That way, people from other worlds wouldn’t try to attack worlds they didn’t belong in. If people don’t know other worlds exist, they won’t try to get to them.”

“So why did _you_ know about them?” Dona asked. There was an accusing note in her voice.

“I met a friend who told me about them,” Riku said. “His name is Terra; I’ll introduce you sometime if he comes over to visit.”

“Is he a Keyblade Master, too?” Palom asked.

Riku smirked. “Not _yet_. But I’m confident it’s only a matter of time.”

Porom raised her hand again. Riku nodded at her. “Um… what’s a Keyblade?” she asked.

“Oh, right,” Riku said, smirking. He stood up from where he’d been sitting, took a few steps back, and summoned Braveheart.

There was a general gasp as the Keyblade formed in his hand. “This is a Keyblade. Only a small handful of people have them, and can use them,” Riku said, mentally adding a _“probably”_. “They’re formed from our hearts, and they’re one of the ways to travel between worlds.” He banished Braveheart, and sat back down.

“How do I get one?” Palom said excitedly, and Porom whacked him on the head.

Riku shook his head. “Sorry, only a few people can have them. You have to be worthy.”

“What does _that_ mean?” Dona asked, tone implying he’d given her great personal insult.

“Excellent question,” Riku said, smirking. “We’re not quite sure.”

Pacce was frowning. “But… Riku, how did you _get_ a Keyblade?”

Riku leaned in close, and the kids all leaned in, too. Very quietly, Riku whispered, “That’s a _secret_.”

“Awwwwwwww!”

“Sorry,” Riku said, trying to hide his grin. “But some things have to stay private, you know?” More to the point, new Keybearers were a headache that, while likely inevitable, would hopefully be a long way off. Riku figured their group deserved a bit of normalcy before trying to raise a new generation. “Any more questions?”

There was another moment of intense discussion, then the group looked at Riku and wandered, collectively, a few feet away for more privacy. Riku sighed.

“Ey, not bad, ya?” Wakka said, lightly punching Riku in the shoulder.

Riku sighed. “You think so? I suck at talking to kids.”

“Hey, sucking at something is the first step to being sorta good at something,” Wakka said. “You’re doing fine.”

Riku snorted, but grinned. “Thanks.”

And maybe that was his answer.

The Islands didn’t need a Keyblade Master to fight Heartless, and they didn’t need a Keyblade Master to train new Keybearers, but what they did need right now was someone to answer questions. Someone to ease the Destiny Islands into their first steps into this larger world they found themselves in.

And that, he could do.

The group of kids returned. “Did you come up with a question?” Riku asked.

There was a brief bit of discussion – apparently they hadn’t decided on who was going to actually _ask_ the question they had in mind – and Porom put her hand up again. “Yes?” Riku asked, amused at the girl’s insistence on following classroom protocol.

“Um, Riku? Are you, Sora, and Kairi gonna get _married?_ ”

Riku blinked. “Um… that’s… um…”

Wakka clapped his hands for attention. “Hey now, that’s a bit of a personal question, ya? If they are gonna get married, it’s something they’ve gotta figure out for themselves first.” He thumped Riku on the back. “I think that’s enough for one day. Run along, kids. Riku’ll still be here tomorrow if you have more questions.”

There was another “ _Awwwwwww!_ ” of disappointment, but the group broke up, leaving Wakka sitting there next to Riku, who hadn’t blinked since the question was asked. “You doing okay there, Riku?” Wakka asked, a teasing tone leaking into his voice.

“Yeah sure I’m fine,” Riku blurted, his voice an octave higher than usual.

“Sure you are,” Wakka teased. “Sure you are.”

Ven was impressed. He’d been hanging out on the Islands for a couple weeks now, and he’d only been “Roxas”ed twice.

Just after they’d chased Braig – Xigbar, Ven mentally corrected himself – to the Islands to save Sora’s mother, he’d taken the time to actually explore the place once things had for the most part calmed down. He’d happened upon a large mansion with a beautiful garden in front of it, and had been shocked to find out it was actually Riku’s house.

He’d been entirely willing to believe that the tall, thin man Riku had introduced him to was Riku’s relative, though. Something about the way they both stood, despite the man having black hair instead of silver, and dark eyes instead of teal. Riku had called the man his uncle, and it had taken Ven some surreptitious questions to Kairi to figure out that Riku’s “uncle” had been his mother and father’s husband. Why Riku didn’t call him his “father”, Ven figured, was a personal matter that he shouldn’t pry into.

The garden itself was what had drawn him to the place; finding out that it was Riku’s house was just serendipity. A long time ago, long before all of this, Master Eraqus had kept a garden. It had been nowhere near as big as Riku’s uncle’s, and if Ven recalled correctly it was primarily for herbs used in cooking, but the scent of overturned soil brought back pleasant memories.

Also some boring memories, as Master Eraqus had had him tend the garden a few times in a (mostly futile) effort to teach Ven some patience.

And that’s what had given him the idea.

He’d asked if he could help with Riku’s uncle’s garden, with the intent of revitalising the garden in the Land of Departure. Riku’s uncle’s eyes had widened when Ven explained how big the plot he was hoping to take care of was, and had cautioned him that it would take years. But that was okay. Ven needed something to do with his time, after all.

Terra’s face upon waking up to find several dozen bags of soil in the middle of the courtyard had been priceless, too.

The climate in the Land of Departure was colder than the Destiny Islands, so it had taken some finagling and trips to both Disney Town and Radiant Garden to figure out a variety of plants that would grow in the Land of Departure and also not murder each other. There was a careful balancing act there, but it had worked out. Aqua and Terra had both offered to help, but Ven had gently but firmly informed them that it was _his_ project, and ideally _his_ hobby. They’d respected that without complaint.

After everything they’d been through, Ven quite enjoyed that he was now committed to helping something grow, to making his home brighter. Plus, it was giving him something to do with his hands; this was the same reason why Riku’s uncle had taken gardening up to begin with. It had been recommended to him by his therapist as something he could control during the year Riku was missing. Ven got the sense that Riku and his uncle were closer now than they’d been before the Destiny Islands’ heart had been stolen, and Sora and Kairi had backed him up on it.

Even the daily tasks, such as watering, were a welcome activity. It gave Ven a lot of time to think about how to approach his one big remaining issue: his missing memories. He had no idea where to start looking for anyone who might have known him before. Xehanort hadn’t seen fit to inform Master Eraqus of where his apprentice had come from, so there was no record that he, Aqua, or Terra had been able to find. If Master Eraqus had tried to figure out where Ven had come from, he hadn’t left a record of his search; although, he also hadn’t left any record of where he’d found Terra and Aqua, either, so it wasn’t really that surprising. As far as Master Eraqus had been concerned, it seemed, Terra, Aqua, and Ventus were from the Land of Departure. And of course, they themselves agreed wholeheartedly.

“‘No one cares where you came from, only where you’ll go,’” Ven muttered to himself, wiping sweat off his brow and leaving behind a streak of dirt that he barely noticed. It was something Aqua had said after their fruitless search, a quote from a book she’d read, he was pretty sure. And no matter where he was from, Terra had added, Ven was their little brother. No matter what.

Ven smiled. He was glad they thought so, because he felt the same. His eyes narrowed, and he zeroed in on a particularly recalcitrant weed.

Truth be told, he was actually somewhat relieved that he wasn’t making any headway at discovering his past. Because it wasn’t something he wanted to do without Vanitas at his side.

His other brother still hadn’t returned yet, but Ven was confident he would. Maybe “confident” was the wrong word – he was sure of it, in the same way he was sure that the sun would rise tomorrow. This would only not happen, in both cases, if something was seriously wrong.

He was also pretty sure that Vanitas wouldn’t want to be away from Aqua any longer than he had to.

Terra had privately made a vow not to mock Vanitas for his crush, should he return. Ven, on the other hand, had made no such vow, and was looking forwards to getting under Vanitas’s skin in true brotherly manner.

Terra had taught him well.

And Vanitas could take it.

Ven would also want to be there to pick up the pieces if Vanitas ever worked up the nerve to confess to her, and Aqua didn’t feel the same way.

He honestly wasn’t quite sure how Aqua felt. He was sure that she didn’t see Vanitas as a sibling, and he could tell she missed him terribly, but somehow he got the impression that she only saw Vanitas as a friend.

Which sucked.

But it wasn’t Ven’s problem to try to solve, on either end.

With a satisfied “Gotcha!” he worked the weed out by the roots, ensuring it (hopefully) wouldn’t be coming back again.

There sure were a lot of dandelions around the Land of Departure, for no reason he could figure out. But then again, they’d been there as long as he, or Terra for that matter, could remember.

And as long as they stayed out of the garden, he had no problems with them.

Ven straightened up from where he’d been kneeling, and looked out over the garden. There were still several dozen yards to cover, but the day was still quite young, not even 9 AM yet.

It was lucky he was a morning person.

Ven grinned, and set to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ey, you know what "I finished the FFX duology" means, ya?  
> It means I have two more games' worth of characters to pull from, and I can _finally_ be sure that I'm writing Tidus and Wakka correctly. You may recognize Pacce, who's a little older than the age he is here in FFX, and also Dona and Barthello, who are _much_ younger here. Palom and Porom, conversely, are _exactly_ their canon ages here, maybe a little _older_ than they are in canon (they're from FFIV, and they're 5. 22 in _FF4: The After Years_ , but I haven't played that).   
> Riku's very good for the whole "what exactly is my purpose" thing; he's existential angst-shaped. I think it's fitting that he finds a purpose in being a Master on his own; figuring out how to do things that no one's done before and blazing a new trail is kind of his thing.   
> On Ven's side of the story, it is a bit of a departure from every other story in this fic in that there's almost no dialog. But hey, he's having a kind of meditative experience, so it fits. The line he quotes is my paraphrasing of the phrase "No one cares who your father was, only the father you'll be", or "Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaasla" in the original Mando'a. ("buir" is gender-neutral, techincally, so it would more properly be "parent" but that's how it was translated and also Mando'a isn't a real conlang. Karen Traviss is no Tolkien. - thinks about her Halo novels- _Definitely_ no Tolkien.) (For those who aren't following, Mando'a was the language of the Mandalorian people in the Star Wars: Republic Commando novels, a series I held near and dear to my heart that was never finished due to being cancelled when the The Clone Wars TV show was greenlit, rendering every other piece of media surrounding the Clone Wars even less canon. Still mad about that. But I digress)  
> If you're interested in Riku's relationship with his uncle that I've hinted at here, I suggest you go over to my [tumblr](https://houseofsannae.tumblr.com/) and take a look at the post pinned to the top. I'm... legitimately not sure how much more specific I can be, so even if you don't have a tumblr, I recommend following that link. And that's all I'll say.  
> And I _think_ that's all for this week! Until next time!


	3. The Case of Aqua and Terra

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aqua goes hunting
> 
> Terra gets what's coming to him

Aqua drummed her fingers against the desk, squinting at the plastic, glass, and metal _thing_ on the table before her.

Ienzo had called it a “computer” and she didn’t like it.

In theory the device would enable inter-world communications – he was having one installed in the Destiny Islands and the Wasteland as well, and connecting both of them to the already existing computers in Radiant Garden and Disney Town to create a sort of inter-computer network. In practice Aqua greatly preferred magic. At least magic followed clear rules that she understood.

“Why does he call it ‘freezing’ if it overheats?” she grumbled to herself. “Why not just call it ‘overheating’?”

Normally she wouldn’t be bothering with this sort of thing at all, but while everyone over on the Islands was getting settled, Aqua had a lot of free time on her hands, and she’d decided to create a digital, searchable record – Ienzo called it a “data-base” – of the Land of Departure’s extensive library.

Upon hearing of her intention, Terra’s eyes had widened, and he’d asked her if she remembered how extensive Master Eraqus’s collection actually was.

Of course she did, she’d spent more time pouring through it than Terra had, she’d pointed out. Terra had nodded, and asked if she was including the Master’s personal collection in that.

And she hadn’t been.

It had increased her task _exponentially_.

Aqua picked up the next book on the pile next to her, and opened a new entry in the data-base. One-handed, she poked at the keys, entering the title letter by letter. “T-H-E-space-A-R-T-space-O-F-space-W-A-R,” she murmured to herself, then clicked to the “author” subsection. “S-U-N-space-W-U. Published in…” She flipped open the book to the title page. “The Land of Dragons. T-H-E-space-L-A-N-D-space-O-F-space-D-R-A-G-O-N-S.”

It was slow going. Her original plan had been to type out the text of the works entirely, for ease of retrieval if for some reason they couldn’t find the book itself. That had shown itself to clearly be impossible in a reasonable amount of time, so she’d contented herself with just making a record of the collection itself, both the Land of Departure’s general collection, and Master Eraqus’s private collection.

She was finding out things she’d never known (or, indeed, wanted to know) about Master Eraqus’s interests. She was desperately hoping that the copy of _Fanny Hill_ she’d found was there for historical reasons only, but she’d (somewhat embarrassedly) logged it as part of the collection anyway.

Embarrassments aside, she was also frustrated with how _slowly_ she was entering the data. With paper and ink, she could transcribe a speech as it was being spoken – it was the result of dutiful note-taking during Master Eraqus’s lectures. Terra and Ven had never really managed to match it; Terra used a form of shorthand and Ven had just never taken notes. But with the keyboard, she was limping along. Ienzo had promised she would improve with practice, and although Aqua agreed with him in principle, in practice the rate she was going was eating at her nerves.

She had to wonder if, after so long fighting, she was having a hard time slowing down. If the constant threat hadn’t become normal to her, after three (subjective) or thirteen (objective) years of fighting for her life.

It was fortunate for her, then, that she had so many friends to help her.

Terra rapped on the open doorframe that led into the library. “Hey,” he said, walking in. “Working hard?”

“No comment,” Aqua replied, setting _The Art of War_ aside to be reshelved when she was done with this section.

“Any idea what time it is?” Terra asked, casually.

Aqua pointed to the small clock at the corner of the computer. “Three in the afternoon.”

“Oh, nice,” Terra said, leaning in to look at the screen. “I was worried I’d have to go get Kairi to remind you to take breaks.”

Aqua rolled her eyes. “I’m taking breaks. I had lunch at a normal time.”

Terra nodded. “About time for another one, right?”

“I… suppose so,” Aqua said, with a sigh. This project was probably going to take forever.

But, it was something to do. And honestly, she was enjoying the idea of building something that would hopefully last long after she was gone.

“Great!” Terra said, grinning. “Ven’s in the shower right now getting the dirt off, but once he’s done, I thought we could go over to Disney Town, get some ice cream. You in?”

Aqua beamed. “Sure!” She stood up from the chair, and stretched. “I wonder if Chip and Dale have any advice for me on how to use this thing.”

“Still typing slow?” Terra asked, teasing.

Aqua glared at him. “Maybe.”

“Come to think of it,” Terra said, thoughtfully. “How _do_ Chip and Dale use a computer? They’re way too small to use the keyboard.”

“I would assume they have chipmunk-sized keyboards,” Aqua said. Terra nodded, agreeing with her point.

“I’m not gonna let you work the whole time, you realize,” he said. “This is gonna be family time, okay? All three of us.”

“Yeah… All… three, of us,” Aqua echoed.

Terra stepped over and put an arm around her shoulders. “Hey. You know he’s going to come back.”

“Is he?” Aqua mumbled. “I wish I was sure.”

“Of course he is,” Terra said, firmly. “How’s he going to insult you if he isn’t around?”

Aqua scoffed. “I’m sure he’d find a way.”

“True,” Terra agreed. “But he’ll come back.”

“This isn’t his home,” Aqua muttered.

“Maybe not, not yet,” Terra said. “But _we_ are. _We’re_ his home. He’ll come back to us.”

Slowly, Aqua smiled. “Terra? Thanks.”

“Hey, anytime,” Terra said, giving her a tight squeeze before letting her go.

Ven stuck his head through the door, his hair still damp from the shower. “Are you two ready to go or not? _I’m_ waiting on _you_ right now.”

“Right, right, we’re coming,” Terra said, and Aqua laughed.

Things might not be _perfect_ , but they were pretty good, all said.

“Why did you get sent to come and get me, Sora?” Terra asked, confused.

Sora shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know. King Mickey just said to go get you, and come with you to the Tower.”

The two, both equally confused, had arrived at the Mysterious Tower together, Sora having gone straight to the Land of Departure to pick Terra up after receiving Mickey’s message. Curiously, there didn’t seem to be anyone around, not even Isa or Lea, who were still trying to figure out living conditions.

“Hello?” Sora asked, poking his head into the common room, which was empty.

“Anyone there?” Sora asked, poking his head into the kitchen, which was empty.

“We’re here, where are you?” Sora asked, poking his head into the dormitory hallway, which was empty.

“Sora,” Terra said.

“Yeah?”

Terra jerked his thumb at the staircase. “Wouldn’t they be up in Master Yen Sid’s study?”

“Oh, right,” Sora said.

They made their way back to the staircase, and started climbing. “So… any idea what this is about?” Sora asked.

Terra shook his head. “Nope. I figured you’d have more of an idea than I would.”

Sora shrugged. “The King just said to come here and bring you.”

“Huh,” Terra said. They’d reached the door to Yen Sid’s study, and with a look back at Sora, who shrugged, Terra knocked on the door.

“Enter,” came Yen Sid’s voice. Still confused, Terra and Sora entered the room.

The lights were low, and Terra wasn’t exactly sure how Yen Sid had managed to dim candlelight, but he’d done so.

Yen Sid sat at his desk, as usual, but before him stood Aqua, King Mickey, and Riku.

“Guys?” Sora asked. “What’s this all about?”

“Well, Sora, we’ve been talking, and we think it’s time we corrected something,” Riku said, smirking at him.

Aqua nodded, beaming. “Something that’s been a long time coming.”

“Somethin’ the two of you’ve both more than earned!” Mickey agreed.

Sora frowned, still confused, but Terra’s eyes were widening in shock. “Master… you mean…”

Yen Sid nodded. “I myself am no longer a Master, but we do now have three. The requisite number for the ceremony as traditionally held. We would have done this sooner, but I felt that it would be better to wait until after Xehanort had been defeated. I had no desire to foist extra responsibility on either of you before that. Though I agree with Masters Aqua and Mickey, you have both more than earned this long ago.”

Sora’s eyes were slowly widening as he realized what was going on. “You mean…”

Aqua, Riku, and Mickey all summoned their Keyblades. Riku brought up Braveheart, and lightly tapped Sora on both shoulders with it. Beside him, Aqua was doing the same with Master’s Defender to Terra.

“But… the exam?” Terra wondered, incredulous.

“It is my belief,” said Yen Sid, “that the both of you have sufficiently shown the Mark of Mastery without need for a conventional demonstration of your ability. Terra, you have persevered through a long decade of imprisonment, and not only survived, but dedicated yourself to striving for greater heights, and found new peace with who you are. For these reasons, we bestow upon you the title of Keyblade Master.

“Sora, your road has been long and arduous, and you have been beset by challenges that would have overwhelmed a Keybearer twice your age. You have taken on burdens far beyond any that could reasonably be asked of you, and carried them with determination. Further, you have sought a peaceful reconciliation even with opponents determined to engage in violence, even at great risk to your personal health. For these reasons, we bestow upon you the title of Keyblade Master.”

Sora’s mouth fell open. Terra blinked in shock.

“Well?” Aqua said, smirking. “Nothing to say for yourselves?”

“I thought they’d be a bit more excited,” Riku said to Mickey, also smirking.

“You’re… serious?” Terra said.

“Entirely,” Yen Sid said, in a tone that took affront to the very _idea_ that he wasn’t serious, that he’d _ever_ not been serious a day in his life, and that he would ever, from this day onto infinity, _not_ be serious.

The door to the fairies’ room burst open, revealing Kairi, Ven, Naminé, Roxas, Xion, Lea, Isa, Donald, Goofy, and the three fairies themselves, along with a large amount of balloons and streamers. “Fuck’s sake, would you two just accept it so we can get to the party?” Kairi barked.

The moment broke, and Terra and Sora burst into laughter, Riku and Aqua following suit a moment later.

It was a few hours later, after they’d returned home, that Terra turned to Aqua. “You really think,” he asked softly “that I deserve it?”

Aqua smiled, nodded, and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Of course you do, Terra,” she said. “I think Master Eraqus would agree.”

“You’re sure?”

She squeezed him tighter. “Completely.”

Terra smiled. “Thanks, Master Aqua.”

She smiled back. “No problem, Master Terra.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, but I like making jokes about Aqua (and Terra and Ven, although I haven't gotten to do it with them yet) being a little bit out of the loop as regards modern technology. Poor Aqua, nobody taught her about home row (do... schools still teach typing? Or do they just assume kids already know how to type? Back in my day they put plastic covers over our keyboards, and we learned to type blind! Grumble grumble...)  
> If you don't get the Fanny Hill joke, look it up on Wikipedia. DO NOT google it. I will leave final determination on _why_ Eraqus had a copy up to your interpretations.  
> Over on Terra's side, it's been a long time coming, eh? I think both he and Sora have proved themselves at this point. That said, I have a little bit of a rant to go on so if you'll just... excuse me... as I... climb on... this soap box... there we go. *ahem*  
> I see a lot of vitriol lobbed at Yen Sid for not passing Sora during 3D and honestly... I don't understand why? Like, if you're doing your driving test and you're halfway through it when a herd of elephants rampages through town, one of which steps on your car, are you really going to be mad at the instructor for saying "hey, sorry this happened, you were doing real well, but I can't pass you since you couldn't finish the test, you'll have to try again later"? The point of the Mark of Mastery exam was to evaluate Sora and Riku's skills, and it's _not fair to Sora_ to evaluate him based on _events he couldn't control_. Xehanort fucked up the test, Yen Sid says "this therefore doesn't count, we'll have to try again later when we have time and _reality isn't in danger_ ", and you're mad at _Yen Sid_ for it? _WHY?_  
>  Oh, and while I'm at it, "possessing the Power of Waking" had absolutely nothing to do with achieving Mastery. It was needed _to save Ven, Aqua, and Terra_ , which was _the goal_ at the time. Yen Sid was trying to kill two birds with one stone, and evaluate Sora and Riku during their mission to acquire the power. That's why "you can't help Aqua/Ven/theoretically Terra because you don't have the Power of Waking" kept getting brought up in KH3, and "not being a Master" never was. Because they're _not actually connected_. If we want Sora to be labelled a Master, the first thing that needs to happen is the Kingdom Hearts series giving up the idea that there _must_ be a diagetic reason why Sora starts at level 1 in every game starring him.  
> Okay just... let me... step back down... there we go. Sorry, a huge pet peeve of mine is people getting really mad at things when that anger is stemming from them misinterpreting whatever it is they're mad at. It's not the piece of media's fault you're not paying attention or giving things more than three seconds' thought!  
> Whoops, took a step back up there for a second. I think that's everything I wanted to say. Next week is the best time, because it's KAIRI TIME (and Naminé, too). Also, the 21st of September is coming up, so keep an eye out for our yearly extra not-related-to-this-series fic. Although this one might not be to everyone's taste, and that's all I'll say.  
> Until then!


	4. The Case of Naminé and Kairi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naminé gets a new room
> 
> Kairi talks about herself with a friend

Things don’t always go according to plan.

Sometimes, the best intentions can go horribly awry if a crucial detail is missing.

“We weren’t sure what colour you wanted the room to be,” her father was saying, “so we just primed it and figured you could decide for yourself.”

She could barely hear him over the pounding in her ears, the slowly increasing panting of her breath, as he led her into her room.

Her room.

Her _solid white room_.

“Naminé?” her father asked, but she wasn’t able to respond. “Naminé!”

She heard a _thump_ and through a veil realized it was the sound of herself hitting the floor. She could hear both her father and Kairi calling her name, but it was so far away. Her heart was pounding, she couldn’t catch her breath, she couldn’t feel her hands –

There was abruptly a pulling sensation, and she was dimly aware of being taken out of the room, back into the hallway. “Arms above your head,” came an unfamiliar voice. “Focus on your breathing. Take your time.”

Naminé did as the voice instructed, and slowly she felt her heart start to slow back down. Her eyes focused, and she became aware of a woman with short blonde hair pinned back with pink clips, bright green eyes, and a conservative-looking pink suit. To her right and left were Naminé’s father and Kairi, both looking worried.

“Nam, I’m so, so sorry, when he said he was priming the room I didn’t think about what colour that meant!” Kairi said, in a half-panic.

“I’m… all right,” Naminé said, although her heart was still pounding.

“What happened?” her father asked, sounding just as concerned as Kairi.

“I’ll… explain, Dad,” Kairi said. “Fuck, I should’ve told you before.”

“It was a panic attack,” the blonde woman said. “I would assume that there was a traumatic incident in Miss Naminé’s past having to do with white rooms.”

“You… could say that,” Naminé said. “Fuck.”

The woman’s eyebrow seemed to twitch. “How do you feel?”

“Better, thank you,” Naminé said. “Um… if you don’t mind me asking… who are you?”

The woman raised her eyebrow. “My name is Mikoto. I’m–”

“Naminé, I’m so sorry, I had no idea,” her father broke in. Kairi had given him a whispered explanation of why Naminé had issues with the colour white, and he was suitably horrified.

“You didn’t know,” Naminé said. “It’s not your fault.”

“What kind of politician would I be if I didn’t take responsibility for my actions?” her father said, with a small smile. The blonde woman – Mikoto – rolled her eyes.

“A shit one,” she muttered.

“Well, that’s why you’re so valuable to the office,” Naminé’s father said, smirking at her. Mikoto rolled her eyes again. Naminé looked from one to the other, confused.

“I’m his administrative assistant,” Mikoto explained.

“She makes sure I don’t make an ass of myself,” Naminé’s father added.

“I try to minimize the possibility, _sir_ ,” Mikoto said, pointedly.

Naminé’s father glanced at her. “I said you don’t have to call me ‘sir’, Mikoto.”

“That you did, sir,” Mikoto deadpanned. She shook her head. “Either way, are you sure you’re all right, Miss Naminé?”

“Well… I’m not hyperventilating anymore, so that’s a good thing,” Naminé said.

Mikoto nodded. “Pardon me if this is an intrusive question, but… given your reaction, are you seeing a professional for this sort of thing?”

Naminé blinked. “Um… no.” Yen Sid had made the arrangements for people who needed it to find therapists in Radiant Garden, but Naminé herself had declined, both not wanting to try to learn to trust a stranger, and also not wanting to take resources away that could go to someone who needed them more. Mikoto fixed her with an incredibly exasperated look when Naminé mumbled through her explanation of this. Shaking her head, Mikoto pulled out a business card, and handed it to her.

“This is my brother’s number. Call it, make an appointment. You might call it nepotism, but… he’s actually very good at what he does,” she said, adding the last bit in an undertone.

Naminé looked to her family. “Kairi? Dad?”

Kairi shrugged. “Going to therapy has been helping me a lot. And it’s not taking resources away from other people for you to ask for help.”

“I agree with Kairi,” her father said. “You’re not a burden for needing help. To anyone.”

Naminé sniffed, and nodded her head. “Okay.”

And that was how, a few days later, she found herself in a warmly painted office, waiting on an appointment.

A young man who looked almost identical to Mikoto poked his head through the inner door. His eyes were the same teal, and his hair was the same blond, albeit tied up in a short ponytail. He wore a white sleeveless shirt under a teal vest that matched his eyes, and blue pants. Naminé felt like she’d seen him somewhere before. “So,” he said, grinning at her. “Are you my young Keybearer?”

Naminé stood, and nodded. “I’m Naminé.”

“Nice to meet you, Naminé,” the man said. “I have to thank you.”

Naminé blinked. “Thank me? For what?”

“Well… you, and all your friends, spilled the beans about there being other worlds,” the man said, still grinning. “So, me and my sister don’t have to live as much as a secret anymore.” Before Naminé’s startled eyes, a prehensile tail the same colour as the man’s hair twitched into view from behind his back. “Yeah, you… might not be the only ones here on the Islands who came from somewhere else,” he added, at her look of shock. “So there’s that. And also the fact that you’ve delivered me a _fantastic_ tenor in the form of your friend Roxas.”

Naminé suddenly realized where she’d seen the man before. He was the person who had approached Roxas about joining the theatre group. “Oh, um… That’s…” Naminé said, at a loss.

The man shook his head. “Sorry, sorry, bad first impression. We’re here to talk about _you_. Please, come in.” He stepped back through the door, motioning for Naminé to follow him. Still a little confused, she followed him into a cozy office, and sat on a couch against the wall.

The man settled himself into a chair across the room, carefully arranging his tail so he wasn’t sitting on it. “Um… thank you for seeing me, Mr. Tribal,” Naminé said.

The man laughed. “Hey, I’m not _that_ old. You can just call me Zidane.”

That had been several weeks ago, and Naminé was still seeing Zidane on a weekly basis. She, and he as well, thought she was already improving. And Naminé was proud of herself for it.

She made one last stroke with her brush, and leaned back on the ladder to consider her work. Even after everything, she _had_ adored the idea of painting her own room.

It had helped that while she was out, her father and Kairi had taken it upon themselves to repaint the room in pink primer. Getting the colours she wanted would be harder, but it was a challenge Naminé appreciated.

“Naminé?” her dad called.

“In here!” she replied, sliding down off the ladder.

“I was looking through the mail and… Wow,” her father said. Naminé had banned him and Kairi from entering the room while she was working in it, but it was close enough to being finished that she was okay with them seeing it.

“Like it?” she asked, smirking.

Her father spun around the room, taking it in.

The house Kairi and her father, and now Naminé, lived in was in a very central location. Naminé had taken that into consideration, and painted her room as if the walls were invisible. Everything that could be seen out her windows, and also anything that would have been visible had the other walls of the house not been in the way, was represented in exacting scale and detail.

“Naminé, this is… this is fantastic,” her dad said, grinning at her.

Naminé blushed. “It’s just something I threw together.”

“The hell it is,” her dad said, laughing. “You’ve got some incredible skills, young lady. I’m gonna have a hard time pinning this to the refrigerator, though.”

Naminé’s blush deepened. “A-anyway, what was that about the mail?”

“Oh, yes,” her dad said. “Well, this arrived for you.” He held out a letter with Naminé’s name printed on it, and no return address – indeed, no address at all.

Frowning, Naminé took the letter, and flipped it over to reveal a wax seal inset with the Land of Departure emblem. Her eyes widened. Carefully, she broke the seal and withdrew the contents.

There was a folded letter, and an unfolded note. The note was written in Aqua’s hand.

_Naminé –_

_I know I already made the offer, but this is something that Master Eraqus did for me back when I first started, and I figured you might want one as a keepsake. See you in a couple of days?_

_– Aqua_

Surprised, Naminé unfolded the longer letter.

_It is with great hope and interest that I, Aqua, Keyblade Master of the Land of Departure, do hereby offer to Naminé of the Destiny Islands the position of Keyblade Apprentice._

The letter continued beyond that, but Naminé could barely read it, tears of happiness clogging her eyes. “Congratulations!” her dad said; he’d been reading over her shoulder.

Naminé laughed, feeling lighter than she’d ever felt before.

“Soooooo… What did you want to talk about, Kairi?”

Kairi looked at her best friend and wondered where to begin. They were sitting on the play island, on the end of the dock, watching the sunset. Kairi had asked her out, because she needed to talk about this.

Selphie eyed her curiously, and a light smirk played across her face. “Is it about your boyfriends? Are you looking for advice?” she teased.

“Not… exactly,” Kairi said, and took a deep breath. It was _Selphie_. Her best friend (that she wasn’t dating). She wasn’t going to judge her. “Selph… something got brought to my attention recently, and I need to talk to someone about it. Someone who isn’t my boyfriends.”

Selphie frowned. “What is it, Kai?”

Kairi took another deep breath. “Selphie… I think I like girls, too. I think I’m bisexual.”

There was a moment of silence. “Yes, and?” Selphie said eventually.

Kairi’s mouth dropped open. She closed it, and pressed her hands over her eyes. “Light, not you, too!” she moaned.

Selphie patted her on the back. “Everyone else saw it before you did?” she asked, sympathetic.

“Yeah…” Kairi groaned. “To the point where Terra thought it was a thing they were all avoiding talking about.” She sighed. “Why the fuck did it take me so long to figure it out?”

“Well,” Selphie said, “you’ve had a pretty singular focus on two specific boys for… mmmm…. As long as I’ve known you?”

Kairi glared at her. “Still, you’d think I would have realized I didn’t _just_ like boys. When did you figure out about yourself?”

“That I’m pan, or that I’m aromantic?” Selphie asked.

Kairi shrugged. “Are those different answers?”

“Yes,” Selphie said. “Sexuality-wise, I figured it out when we first started watching those puberty videos in school. Remember those?”

“I try not to,” Kairi said. “Those things were _weird_. It was like they wanted to talk about it but they also didn’t?”

Selphie nodded. “I’m gonna see about making newer ones eventually. When I’m old enough that it’s not going to ruffle feathers. Anyways, it wasn’t until we saw those that it occurred to me that there’s a big chunk of people who _aren’t_ attracted to literally everyone around them. Aside from people related to me, obviously, but I think that goes without saying.”

“You’d be surprised,” Kairi muttered, and both of them rolled their eyes.

“So yeah, it was more a ‘oh there’s a word for this’ and also ‘this is a thing that not all people experience’ type of thing than a ‘I’m discovering something I didn’t know about myself’.” Selphie pulled up her legs and wrapped her arms around her knees. “As for being aro… I… broke a lot of hearts before I realized I wasn’t interested in a romantic relationship. I feel horrible about it. I _thought_ I wanted romance, but… Things never seemed to line up for me. Going through the motions never felt right. So… I have a lot of _very close_ friends, and that’s what makes me happy.”

“A lot of _very close_ friends?” Kairi asked, amused.

Selphie stuck out her tongue. “I like a large group. There’s plenty of me to go around as long as everyone’s okay with being casual.”

Kairi smiled. “Well, I’m glad you found a system that works for you.” Her smile dimmed. “I don’t like that… everyone seemed to know about me, except me.”

Selphie put a hand on her shoulder. “Like I said, you had a pretty laser-focus on Sora and Riku. And hell, I don’t blame you, they’re real cuties.” She gave Kairi a salacious wink, and Kairi snorted with laughter.

“Hey, I have _excellent_ taste,” she said.

“You do indeed,” Selphie agreed. “…And, just to be clear, this isn’t you saying you think you chose wrong, right?”

“Abso- _fucking_ -lutely not!” Kairi exclaimed.

Selphie smirked. “Thought so. Sorry, had to be sure.”

“I’m quite sure,” Kairi said, sticking her own tongue out at the other girl. Selphie’s smirk turned into a snicker.

“Okay, good,” Selphie said. “Sometimes these things are hard to see from the inside, Kairi. And you were lucky enough that you found two people you loved very early on. If Sora or Riku had been a girl, you would’ve known you were bi much, much earlier. Hug?”

Kairi accepted the hug. “There’s nothing to be upset about. You know, now. You’re not any different, you just know more about yourself. And we all love you. Especially your boys,” Selphie said.

Kairi let out a long breath. “Thanks, Selph. Makes me feel a lot better.”

Selphie beamed. “Of course, Kai! What’re friends for if not helping each other through our sexuality crises?”

Kairi laughed. “True, true.” She squeezed Selphie in the hug, then let her go.

Selphie stood up. “Glad I could help. And hey, if you, Sora, and Riku ever want to explore your attraction to girls… well, you know where I live!” She winked, and turned to walk back across the dock.

Kairi smiled, and then the full meaning of Selphie’s words hit her. “Wait, Selphie? What do you mean by that?”

Selphie turned back, and winked again.

“SELPHIE!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey you know what I haven't done in a while? Hurt Naminé.  
> Just a little reminder that her problems haven't just gone away, although actually getting a therapist is a step in the right direction. Her therapist being Zidane Tribal has only been the plan since I played FF9... which I finished literally a year ago this week (one year and four days, to be exact). My how time flies, right? Like several other Square Enix games, FF9 presented me with a small blonde girl and I immediately needed to adopt her, i.e. I knew from go that I had to involve Zidane's "baby sister" Mikoto _somehow_. I have a long explanation of why she and Zidane still have tails in KH-verse, and yes, it involves big bro Kuja, too, but that's a story for another day (literally).  
> I did also want to underline that Naminé is actually _really fucking skilled_ at art. Unlike her sketching, her mural-painting is unlikely to be plot relevant, but it's still something I wanted to include.  
> I _also_ also want to underline that Kairi has friends that aren't her boys. Selphie has been pan (which has been mentioned before in the comments) and aro (which I don't think has been mentioned) the entire time I've been writing her. Which also made certain lines of hers in FF8 _hilarious_ to me (There's one point where (if she's in your party) she replies to Seifer during one of his bos fights with "eh, you're not my type".) And... I think that's all I have to say about that. ;)  
> In other news, you should check that pinned post on my tumblr again! There might be more news attached! Wink!   
> In other other news, I decided to take a break from ~~ENDLESS GRINDING~~ Dragon Quest VII, and instead I'm playing Final Fantasy XII! (I tried to watch the story cutscenes for FFXI but that was a 900-video playlist even if they were primarily 30-second videos so... Yeah. Not happening. If you know a good story recap/summary video I am still curious). I'm reveling in the sheer glory of CAMERA CONTROL, and I was excited about it being better than FFXIII's camera controls for about twelve seconds, wherupon which I tried to move during combat while facing the enemy and instead found myself staring straight down at my own scalp because I had put my back against the wall. In the hallway. Which is 50% wall. I'll take 13's being a little slow over this, thanks. So far I cannot say for certain whether I'm enjoying it or not, but as a Star Wars fan I'm pretty fulfilled so far (just broke out of prison! Again! For like the fifth single-player FF game in a row! And now I'm off to rescue my not-girlfriend!)  
> I think that about covers it. Next week, we'll be checking in with our favourite gay disasters as they engage in some adult activities...


	5. The Case of Isa and Lea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isa finds his home
> 
> Lea watches the monkey's paw curl closed

“And you’re quite certain it isn’t some… remnant of Xehanort?” Isa asked, quietly.

Yen Sid shook his head. “With what you’ve told me, I am quite sure.”

Isa was standing in Yen Sid’s study, across from the sorcerer behind his desk. Since the fight against Xehanort, he had noticed something… odd, happening to him. However, Yen Sid had been able to assuage his fears.

“What… do I do about it?” Isa asked, his tone still low.

Yen Sid shrugged. “Whatever you desire. There is no wrong choice here.”

“And… if I decide to do nothing?” Isa asked.

“Then that is your choice, and it will be respected,” Yen Sid said. “I have no desire to push you into a position or onto a path that you do not wish for.”

Isa nodded. “I… see. Thank you, Master.”

Yen Sid nodded. “I am glad I could assuage your doubts, Isa.”

Isa smiled, wryly. “Doubts, not really. But fears, yes.”

Lea stuck his head in the door. “Hey, you, uh, left this open. Everything cool?”

“The temperature in this room is kept constant,” Yen Sid said, without a hint of humour in his voice.

From the way Lea rolled his eyes, Isa could tell he knew the sorcerer was making a joke – though Yen Sid would likely deny it to his grave. “Right, whatever. Everything okay, Isa?”

Isa nodded. “I merely needed Master Yen Sid’s advice on a… personal matter,” he said.

Lea frowned. “If it was something bad, you’d tell me, right?”

Isa nodded. “Of course I would. It’s nothing life-threatening, but I would prefer to keep it to myself.”

“Oh. Yeah. Fine, I guess,” Lea said, scratching the back of his head, although Isa could tell he was still worried.

Isa crossed the room and put a hand on Lea’s shoulder. “Lea,” he said, taking care to look the other man in the eyes, “I promise. It’s not something to worry about, okay? And I will tell you immediately if it _does_ become something to worry about.”

Lea let out a huff. “All right. As long as you promise.” Almost unconsciously, he raised a hand and placed it on Isa’s.

The two stood there, gazing into each other’s eyes, until Yen Sid coughed. “Oh, right,” Lea said, taking a step back. “I’m about to head over to Radiant Garden, if you wanted to come with?”

“Looking for a place to live?” Isa asked.

“Well… more I just want to touch base, see if there’s anything I can do to help with the reconstruction,” Lea said. “Not sure I want to… um… Well, again, you want to come along? They could use every pair of hands they can get.”

“I suppose,” Isa said. What could it hurt?

Only his heart, as it turned out.

He’d been to Radiant Garden since the Fall, of course, but he’d always gone as Saïx. This was the first time Isa had returned home, although…

Returning “home” might give the wrong impression. First, the subdivision he and Lea had lived in was long-demolished.

“Yeah,” Lea muttered beside him, “yeah. ‘You can’t go home again’, huh?”

“Apparently not,” Isa said, softly. In the back of his mind, he’d always assumed some horrible fate had befallen his childhood home. To say nothing of his and Lea’s parents.

It was hard to mourn without feelings. Coming to it so long after the fact… the wound would only heal slowly, with time. A slow ache, rather than a quick, burning pain.

In some ways it was easier.

The void left behind was still the same.

“Back to work?” Lea asked, and Isa nodded, grateful for the distraction. Leon of the Restoration Committee had put them to work clearing rubble, after carefully instructing Lea that fire was not allowed without clearance. Isa had forestalled the inevitable comment about how fire in this case was in itself a form of “clearance” (and wasn’t that what Leon wanted to begin with?), and had dragged Lea to the site.

They hadn’t run across any of the other former members of Organization XIII, for which Isa was grateful. Lea seemed to have cleared the air between himself and Even (Isa heavily suspected a mutual love for Xion had helped there significantly), and Ienzo didn’t seem to bear any sort of ill will towards them, but Dilan and Aeleus were unknown quantities. And moreover, Isa had no idea how any of them would react to _him_ as opposed to Lea. Their relations with Saïx had been very different than their relations with Axel.

He stopped for a second, breathing hard. He hadn’t been this out of breath in a long time. Lea was quick to notice, trotting over to his side – privately, Isa was both amused and touched by his concern.

Lea was frowning as he held out a water bottle. “You know… you can take the jacket off.” Lea himself had doffed his ridiculous orange leather jacket (although given the fairies’ refusal to work with Isa’s boots, Isa suspected it might be imitation leather – that or they had refused to work with shoes on principle, as they weren’t elves).

“That’s fine,” Isa said. “I prefer to keep it on.”

Lea pursed his lips, and looked around the area. No one else was present, but he kept his tone low as he said, “Isa, I’m not going to give you shit for wearing a sports bra. It’s _me_.”

“I’m not _wearing_ a sports bra,” Isa replied, in the same tone.

Lea’s eyes widened. “Wait, so… you’re wearing… Fuck’s _sake_ , Isa!”

“What?”

Lea rolled his eyes. “Don’t ‘what’ me! You know better, you idiot.” He summoned his Keyblade and created a Light Corridor. “Go change.”

“Excuse me?” Isa asked, raising his eyebrows.

“You heard me. Go back to the Tower, get changed. I’ll keep this open till you get back.” Lea shook his head. “Are you _trying_ to pass out on me?”

Isa, having no response for this, stepped through the Corridor. He returned after a few minutes, arms crossed across his chest.

“ _Thank_ you,” Lea said, pointedly.

“Hmph,” Isa grunted, his arms still covering his chest. “I’m still not taking the jacket off.”

Lea sighed. “Just… don’t die on me, okay?”

“I will make the effort,” Isa said, the ghost of a smirk rising to his lips.

By the end of the day Isa hadn’t passed out, and they’d managed to clear the rubble off of the street. “So… There’s a… thing, I guess we should talk about,” Lea said.

“And what is that?” Isa asked, curious.

Lea took a deep breath. “Isa… I…”

There was a moment of silence.

Lea breathed out. “I don’t think I want to live here, in Radiant Garden.”

Isa blinked. “Ah.”

Lea looked at him. “You don’t sound surprised?”

Isa shrugged. “I… understand where you’re coming from. Too many things have changed since we were teenagers. This world… isn’t home, anymore.”

“Yeah,” Lea said, softly. He bit his lip. “I was… I was thinking of looking for a place in Twilight Town.”

Isa nodded. “That makes sense.”

“It does?”

“That town is special to you, and to Roxas and Xion,” Isa said.

Lea grinned. “Yeah. Yeah, it is.”

“So it makes sense that you would want to make a home there,” Isa finished.

Lea nodded. “So, uh… what about you?”

Isa frowned, looking over at him. “What about me?”

“You given any thought to where you want to call home?” Lea asked. There was a strange note in his voice, like he wanted to be hopeful, but wasn’t letting himself.

Isa’s frown deepened. “I should have thought that would be obvious.”

Lea’s face seemed to fall. “Oh. Y-yeah, I guess it is. You’d want to stay h–”

“Lea,” Isa said, softly, stepping closer to him and placing a hand on his arm. “Wherever you are, that’s where my home is.”

Not for the first time, Isa mused that it was disappointing how the shade of red Lea turned when he blushed wasn’t the same shade as his hair.

“Oh,” Lea finally mumbled. “Okay.”

Isa smirked. “So, and forgive my forwardness, I would prefer to live with you. If you’ll have me.”

“Yeah… y-yeah, of course, duh, of course I will!” Lea said, seeming to shake himself mentally before starting to grin.

“Well, then, that’s settled. If Leon can spare us, perhaps we should look around Twilight Town, try to find a place that can comfortably fit the four of us?” Isa suggested.

Lea grinned. “An excellent idea.”

Isa grinned back. Lea had been right.

After everything, there was the two of them.

And that wasn’t just enough, it was everything.

Lea had been mentally screaming in victory from the moment Isa had said he wanted to keep living with him.

Also in panic.

You’d think, at this stage in his life, he’d have had enough experience at being gay not to panic.

Life’s funny that way.

“Lea,” Isa broke into his thoughts, “I asked you a question.”

Lea blinked, mentally reviewing the input from the part of his brain that had been actively following the discussion instead of screaming in panictory. “Uh…. You were asking if I was sure?”

Isa nodded, an exasperated expression on his face. “What time did you go to bed last night?”

“Same as usual,” Lea said.

“That late?” Isa deadpanned.

“Hey!” Lea protested.

There was a clearing of the throat from across the room, and both of them turned to regard the woman whose office they had invaded (as per their appointment). They were trying to find a place to live in Twilight Town, and apparently it was more complicated than just picking a place and forking over the munny.

Fortunately, Yen Sid had been able to cover for any gaps in paperwork they had. He was a personal friend to the mayor of Twilight Town, who, like all world leaders, was aware of the other worlds. Yen Sid’s name carried weight – or rather, the name of Mr. Retlaw, a tenured professor at Eventide University who had taken an extended leave of absence for the past couple years, carried weight. Lea had no idea how to deal with the fact that Yen Sid apparently had a life outside the Mysterious Tower.

But, after all paperwork and credit issues had been dealt with, there had still been the issue of picking a property.

Which is why they were currently terrorizing (unintentionally) a poor realtor.

The woman who was (regretting) helping them was slightly shorter than them both, with brown hair and eyes. She had, in the days they had spent with her going back and forth through Twilight Town, generally worn white or ivory tunics above brown pants and black boots.

Her name was Margeria, and she was sick of their shit (Lea assumed).

“Gentlemen,” she said, sounding to Lea’s ears very professional, “if you’re ready?” She held out a pen.

Lea looked down at the paperwork in front of him, suddenly nervous. This was a real big step, especially considering he was positive Isa only wanted to be friends. It was a lot to think about, hundreds of ways it could go wrong were surging through Lea’s head, Isa was signing the paper, and there was always the fear that it wouldn’t go the way he wanted. Not that things _were_ going to go the way he wanted, since Isa wasn’t interested, and –

Lea’s thoughts crashed to a halt, and he backspaced a few clauses as Isa shifted the paperwork over to him, and offered the pen. “Still with me?” he said, a dry, joking tone in his voice.

“Yeah,” Lea said, taking the pen and signing the paper. “Yeah, still here.”

“Well, gentlemen,” Margeria said, taking the contract back, “Congratulations.” She’d been a bit skeptical that they could afford the asking price, but Heartless hunting was an incredibly lucrative job. “You can move in tomorrow.”

“And just want to check again, it’s going to be okay that we’ll have more people moving in in a couple years?” Lea asked.

Margeria nodded. “It’s _your_ house now. First time not renting a place?” she asked.

“Yep,” Lea said, which was true. The fact that he’d never rented a place either was immaterial.

To his surprise, she smirked. “Don’t worry. It’s always weird for newlyweds.”

Lea felt his face redden. “W-w-we’re not–” he sputtered.

“We’re not married,” Isa cut in, also smirking.

“Ah, I see,” Margeria said. “Don’t worry, we’re a pretty open community here. However you see each other, no one will think it strange. Regardless,” she continued before Lea could clear up the misunderstanding, “Congratulations again.”

“Thank you,” Isa said smoothly as he stood up. “I’ll return in the morning to collect the keys?”

“Please do,” she said, shaking his hand. Lea followed Isa out of the office, shaking her hand and mumbling pleasantries on autopilot.

Isa steered him down the steps and down the street. “Are you going to be all right? You look like you’ve been at the beach without sunscreen. Again.”

“I’m fine,” Lea said, still bewildered.

“You look like a lobster realising this complimentary jacuzzi is a trap.”

“Okay, now you’re just being a dick,” Lea said, knocking his shoulder against Isa’s.

“I thought you liked those?” Isa said, smirking.

“Ha, ha,” Lea said, sarcastic. “Speaking of lobsters, we could grab dinner before going back to the Tower. Should probably get to know the restaurants in the area, right?”

“Mmm,” Isa agreed. “Any preferences?”

“Hmmm. I was going to ask you that,” Lea said.

Isa nodded. “Well… I do have a particular fondness for _noodles_.” There was a particular smirk on his face, like he was trying to imply something, but Lea had no idea what that could be.

“So… something with noodles?” he said.

Isa laughed, which to Lea underlined the idea that he’d missed something. “Something with noodles,” he agreed.

Lea nodded. “After you?”

“It would be my pleasure,” Isa said, still grinning.

How he’d missed that smile. Ideally, he’d be seeing it a lot more often.

Even if not for the reasons he wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to point out, for the record, Lea isn't actually _this_ dumb. It's confirmation bias; he thinks that Isa isn't into him because he thinks Isa had/has a thing for Girl X. He expects Isa to not be into him, so he misses all the signs that Isa is, no matter how blatant they are. And, if I do say so myself, _they're pretty fucking blatant_. But I'm sure it'll be fine. It's not like these two are canonically bad at communicating about their feelings, right? Right?  
> Though I do want to do quite a bit of things with Radiant Garden, Lea and Isa aren't going to be living there. It just feels right for them to be in Twilight Town, you know? The other half of the reason why I've brought up a university in Twilight Town, aside from introducing Yen Sid's professorsona, was that eventually Roxas and Xion (and Hayner, Pence, and Olette) will be going there once they're done with high school.   
> I usually prefer to use characters from FF games I've already played (FF12 update: just watched a complete buffoon hook up a powerful anti-magic artifact to his magic-powered engine and have the gall to be shocked as he died of the resulting implosion) but Margeria here is from one I haven't: she's an NPC from FFXIV, part of a quest that involves... housing. If she actually has a personality in the game that I've missed, oh well, I'm sure you'll forgive me. :P  
> And I should probably address my bad habit of stating something subtly and then making it blindingly obvious later if it isn't widely picked up on. [Long story short, there's evidence from canon to support the theory that Isa is trans](https://jeredu.tumblr.com/post/182903673860/axel-you-sure-youre-okay-i-can-see-your-sa%C3%AFx). Meaning it's about as plausible as Naminé being a Keybearer. Do I think it's intentional? Probably not. Do I think it'll ever come up in canon? Fuck no. But, this series has quite clearly not been canon for quite some time.   
> I think that's everything! Join me next week for this fic's final chapter!


	6. The Case of Sora

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sora uncovers a mystery

Something was off.

Everyone was home and dry, even Lea and Isa now that they had that place in Twilight Town. No one was in danger – well, there were still Heartless in Radiant Garden, and there was a plan to eventually take it in turns to go visit and help once everyone was completely settled in – but something was _off_.

Sora had only been getting this feeling today, but he wasn’t sure what it was.

Roxas and Xion were settled into the new house with him and his mom, and after a light argument about rooming conditions everything seemed to be okay. Naminé was settled in to her new home with Kairi and her dad, and was currently discussing the possibility of painting a mural for the township with the Islands’ Public Works department. Isa and Lea had moved into the aforementioned house, and were commuting to Radiant Garden to help with the reconstruction. Ven, Aqua, and Terra were settling back in to the Land of Departure, although they came to visit as often as Terra and Ven could pull Aqua away from her archival project. Donald and Goofy stopped by to visit every now and again – Sora had almost had a heart attack upon walking in on them sharing _stories_ about him with his mom – and Mickey had been more openly visiting Oswald in the Wasteland, tying their kingdoms together in a much stronger fashion.

The only one left unaccounted for was Vanitas, who was still on his journey of self-discovery. But Sora, like Ven, was fully confident that he’d return.

Still, things had been odd today. It felt like a lot of things were moving around him, without him being involved. Almost like whoever was planning… whatever was happening, was trying to do it without Sora noticing.

Sora was better at noticing things than people thought.

And he was starting to get worried.

The fears came to a head when he came home that evening from an errand and found the house lights off. “Mom?” he called, Keyblade ready to be summoned if he needed it. “Everything okay?” He flicked on the light switch in the living room.

There was a loud, resounding “SURPRISE!”

Sora blinked in that exact emotion as all of his friends, Wakka, Selphie, and Tidus included, popped into view. His mother, sitting on the couch, smiled at him. “Yes, Sora, everything’s fine. Happy birthday.”

Sora stood there, mildly bemused. “But… guys… my birthday is _tomorrow_.”

Lea laughed. “You think we can’t make this party last past midnight? Besides, Kairi and Riku called dibs on you all day tomorrow.”

“We have _plans_ ,” Kairi said as Riku nodded, both smirking in a way that made Sora think he’d be quite enjoying those plans.

“Sounds fun!” Selphie said, an identical look on her face, and for some reason, Kairi reddened, which made Selphie laugh. From Riku’s expression, he wasn’t sure what was going on either. It was something they could ask her tomorrow.

“Anyway, we did get you presents!” Tidus said. “And we have cake! Well. Uh. Cupcakes.”

“Roxas made them,” Isa said, smirking.

“Really?” Sora said, excited.

Roxas stopped glaring at Isa long enough to shrug. “I didn’t know what else to get you otherwise. Xion and Naminé did the icing. We made… um… a lot.”

As it turned out, Roxas had misplaced a decimal point in the ingredients, and there were enough extra that everyone would be going home with leftovers. A lot of leftovers.

“No, please, take them,” Xion said at one point. “If you don’t I’m going to eat them _all_ and that wouldn’t be good.”

“I’d be fine with that,” Roxas said, kissing her cheek, and she pushed him away, rolling her eyes.

It was nice, for once, to be able to enjoy themselves without the metaphorical sword hanging over their heads. His mother had pulled out several very old party games from previous parties, and it was fun both to revisit past memories, and also to see Roxas, Xion, and Naminé’s reactions to them. (Riku had been banned from participating in Pin-The-Tail-On-The-Donkey, although once the winner had been decided Kairi and Sora did manage to cajole him into finding the target while blindfolded from three rooms away.) The Truth-or-Dare game had devolved quickly, especially since certain topics had to be banned from the outset due to people being involved not wanting to know the potential answers (Sora’s mother, Lea, Donald, Goofy, Ven, and Aqua, for example.)

Sora was pretty sure he’d overheard Selphie and Kairi conspiring for a “no-holds-barred” session to be held later on.

Which, he could privately admit to himself, he was kind of looking forwards to.

No one had brought up Spin-the-Bottle, as lines had already clearly been drawn and a good deal of them were (or at least considered themselves) related. That was a little disappointing, if only because in Sora’s opinion, it was the perfect way for Lea to confess to Isa. Lea himself was of dissenting opinion.

A little after midnight, when it was officially his birthday, he noticed Selphie come back in from taking a walk, looking strangely self-satisfied. He went to ask her what had happened before remembering that Selphie _would_ tell him, and maybe it was something he’d rather not know. Oddly, she had drawn his mother aside, and after a quick conversation, his mom had left the house holding one of the ( _many_ ) leftover cupcakes.

“Selphie? What’s up?” Sora asked, figuring if she’d told his mother about it, it was a safe subject.

“Hmmm? Oh, I just met someone out on the beach,” she said. “He seemed like he needed a bit of cheering up, so I told your mom. She’s gonna give him a cupcake.”

“That’s funny. Anyone I know?” Sora asked, concerned.

Selphie shook her head. “First time I’d met him. Cute, though.”

“Uh-huh,” Sora said, crossing his arms and giving Selphie the look you’d give a child who was giggling too hard to lie convincingly.

She stuck her tongue out. “Let’s get back to the party.”

“All right,” Sora said, and the party partied on.

It was a few hours later when they stopped for the night, by mutual agreement that they needed to go to bed. Riku and Kairi, purposefully waiting to be the last to leave, quietly asked that they be allowed to stay the night, and after giving them the same rules as Roxas and Xion, Sora’s mother allowed it. Selphie agreed to walk Naminé home in Kairi’s stead (not that she couldn’t take care of herself, but she preferred not to walk alone), and those from different worlds bid goodnight as they left through Light Corridors, Donald and Goofy giving Sora a hug bigger than the one Lea gave Roxas and Xion.

As Sora lay in bed that night, his head leaning against Riku’s chest and Kairi’s against his, he smiled.

They’d more than earned their rest.

And the future didn’t scare him at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said no more birthdays. But I need this one for... reasons. You'll see.  
> Sora is officially 17 now, in KHΨ at least. What does this mean? Well, nothing really. Sometimes a birthday is just a birthday.  
> I did consider this being "The Case of Sora, Donald, and Goofy", but for one I didn't really have an idea for Donald and Goofy other than talking with Sora's mother, and if I did that I'd have to _think_ of embarassing stories (and I didn't want to do that). For another, the "Blank and Blank" name scheme would be off it if it was three people; though as just Sora it winds up being off anyway. Funny, that. Almost like we're missing a member of the cast.  
> The mysterious stranger Selphie encountered is the reasons why this chapter is the way it is. You may ask me whatever you want as long as you're okay with the answer being "I'm not telling you yet". Reasons. You'll see.  
> Aaaaand I thiiiiink... that is everything to talk about. Judging (heh, heh) by the trophy list I think I'm about 2/3rds of the way through FF12? I just met Balthier's dad and also punched him in the face. And I got a trophy for it. (there's only like five story-related trophies for this game, and I'm only missing the one you get for "restoring peace to Ivalice" which I assume is code for "beat the game") Going well! I don't think I'd be loving this game nearly as much if not for 4x speed mode! But the version I'm playing has it so yay for me!  
> Also, if you're reading this on October 9th, today is your last chance as regards that thing pinned to the top of my tumblr! The link's in a previous chapter! Just saying! Wink!  
> Join me once again in two weeks for some girl time. See you then!  
> Oh.  
> And just in case you thought I forgot:
> 
> **One fic remains.**


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